Sunday, December 18, 2016

OHIO -- One of three defendants who are accused of giving alcohol to a puppy has pleaded not guilty.

Farrell Weger, 39, appeared for his arraignment Wednesday in Municipal Court and requested a court-appointed attorney, according to court records.

Weger, his ex-girlfriend Jennifer Schwab, 36, and her roommate Tanna Howser, 32, all of Ashtabula, are charged with cruelty to companion animals after posting a photo on Facebook of the dog passed out on the floor.

The charge is a first-degree misdemeanor upon conviction, and a felony upon any further convictions, City Solicitor Michael Franklin said.

The women are scheduled to appear in Municipal Court for their arraignments at 8:45 a.m. Wednesday, court records show.

Weger has an unrelated domestic violence charge pending in Municipal Court. He is scheduled to face the domestic violence charge at 2:15 p.m. Dec. 27 for a pretrial.

Municipal Judge Laura DiGiacomo is scheduled to preside over Weger’s pretrial in the drunk puppy case at 2:15 p.m. March 14.

Weger has denied giving the 4-month-old puppy enough alcohol to hurt the dog or get her drunk. He said he only gave the puppy “three licks” from a bottle of pre-mixed screwdrivers that he was drinking before going to bed.

Weger charges that after he went to bed that night, Schwab and Howser posted a photo of the puppy on Facebook with the caption, “lilybug is drunk she pass the (expletive) out on us LOL.”

He believes the posting was meant to be a joke, he said.

Weger went to the Justice Center on Monday to talk to Franklin about the charges, he said.

Afterwards, City Solicitor Michael Franklin said it is not unusual for people involved in illegal activity to admit to a portion and deny a portion, or to minimize their participation.

“I think the real problem here is giving a puppy any alcohol at all,” he said. “Why would you do that?”